Hey Girl, Nice Shot

Tuning Out

(part of a series on how I changed my life in 2011 for the better)

Last year I felt very out of balance.  I felt like a chicken with my head cut off.  I was running around like a maniac most of the time.  My life was in chaos.

I wasn't doing any of it well.

I had way too much on my plate, and not enough time and somehow was constantly getting distracted by every bright shiny thing in my path.

I was teaching classes, shooting and editing sessions, blogging, facebooking, working part time, managing my house, kids, cars, and trying to be a good wife.  And it wasn’t working.  I was stressed, grumpy, burned out, and feeling guilty about my choices.

So this year I’ve made some big changes that I’ll share in a multi-part series. 

Tuning Out

This may be the hardest thing I’ve done but tuning out has really had a big impact.  What do I mean by “tuning out”?   

The first thing I did was stop visiting forums.  Yes.  Stopped.  Cold turkey.  It was hard.  I love the online community and seeing what my peers are up to, what they think, what hot new product on the market was being discussed.  But I found I would get sucked into drama – and hours would evaporate.   Literally, poof.

The second thing I did was take back my weekends.  I hardly get online at all on the weekends now.  I usually don’t even boot up my computer.  I do check email from my phone for emergencies and I scan Facebook when I’m in line or hanging around.  BUT,  my weekends are my family time and I no longer feel that I have to respond to every email or facebook message on the weekend anymore.   Photography is such a personal business that sometimes it is hard to separate the personal and the business.  But now my weekends belong to my family which has been very freeing and made me a MUCH better wife and mother.  I cook, clean, take my kids to activities.  I can just hang out while they swim and actually watch when they yell “watch this”.   And all of this has made me more sane, more reasonable, and overall, a happier version of myself.

The third thing I did was stop visiting other blogs every day.  I occasionally will look to see what a favorite friend has been up to.  But I no longer feel the need to see what every photographer in my market is doing, what every photographer I ever met or ever heard of is doing.  This is has not only bought back some time, but it frees my mind from the visual clutter I was filling it with.  It also allows me a clearer state of mind because I don’t get myself all worked up over what this person is doing or the quality of that person’s work.  I was creating all this negative energy in my life that was totally unnecessary.    And I don’t miss it.

That said I learned quite a bit over the years from doing all the things I’m not doing now.  There is a place for it.  But if you find that your life is controlling you instead of you controlling it – take a weekend off the Internet and see what happens.  You might feel that ache of withdrawal in the beginning – but feel refreshed and renewed at the end.

A Different Kind of Summer Job

Here in Houston, summer means high temperatures, high humidity, and hurricane season.  It is also the quiet season for photographers who specialize in outdoor natural light photography.  Honestly, I like to stay fresh and cool in the air conditioning and after four years know that summer is going to be a slow time of year.  I know some lucky southern photographers take the summer off but that wouldn't work for me (waving at you though).

So I thought about something I could do to make money this summer to fill in the time I usually reserve for portrait sessions.  Then the perfect opportunity came across my path. I'm now the part time Internet Specialist for Bernardo Footwear.  And the best part is that because it is part time I can keep doing it after this summer too.

 

It may seem like a strange choice for a photographer but it actually plays off my background really well.  Before I had kids I was a web developer and project manager.  Over the last 4 years I've been building my knowledge of blogging, search engine optimization, running online ads, and social media.  So guess what I'll be doing?  

• Helping them get their new ecommerce website up and running.
• Setting up the blog and creating blog posts.
• Setting up and managing their twitter stream and facebook.
• Managing online advertising campaigns.
• PHOTOGRAPHING THE FALL LINE!!!!

 

I am beyond excited about this.  I actually have more ideas than hours in the day for ways I can help build this brand online.  I'm working part-time out of their headquarters and warehouse in Houston so I get to also document some of the behind the scenes.  The photos above show some of the boxes of shoes pulled to be shipped from online orders, and the second picture shows some samples of the Fall 2010 line which has some great clogs, boots, and ballet shoes.  I cannot wait to get my own pair of those clogs!

 

Bernardo Footwear has been around since 1947 and specializes in leather footwear.  Their sandals and flip flops are a favorite of celebrities dating back to Jackie O and current celebs such as Reese Witherspoon and Marcia Cross are frequently photographed in their sandals.  They are super comfortable and well made so they are actually a good investment.  I'm thrilled to be involved with such a high quality product!

What does this mean for my photography?  Nothing!  I'm doing this job part time (three days a week) which gives me plenty of time to work on my photography and training the other days of the week.  And photography is actually part of my job with them too! 

   

Now, I would not be a good blogger if I didn't ask for a discount for my readers and they said okay.  So if you need a new pair of summer sandals or beach flip flops, use the code "heygirl10" in the customer code field during checkout for 10% off your purchase until June 30th, 2010 and there is free shipping on orders over $59.   My personal favs are the Milly and Miami (our best selling item) leather flat sandals, and the Delray jelly flip flops in the beach category.

I'm curious, what do you do during your off seasons?  Down here where it is supposed to be 96 degrees tomorrow we are "off" for the summer.  I know in NY in the winter when it is below 0 I assume it is a quiet.  Do you look for extra work, offer promotions, or just enjoy a little down time?

Planning for 2010

I'm sitting on the floor supervising my 3 year old's bath while she is home sick from daycare.  Probably a more common scene for Mom's who also run their own small businesses.  Multi-tasking is a fact of life when you have kids, a home, a husband, pets, and a business.  Unfortunately it is all too easy to have the "I want it all" approach and end up overwhelmed, overscheduled, and unhappy overall.

In 2009 I wanted it all.  I wanted to have a nice and organized house, spend fun quality time with my kids, grow my business, and maybe even sneak in a date night or two with my husband.  And you know what, I ended the year unhappy.  My husband, who is much more willing to ask the tough questions, made me face the reality that I just can't have it all...not right now at least. 

So for 2010 I'm going to make some hard decisions about how I spend my time.  And I expect, being able to really commit to a few things is going to make me much happier overall.  It'll make me a better wife, a better mom, and a better business owner. 

My number one priority for 2010 is to get healthy.  I've completely slacked in the last year on this.  After getting in great shape and loosing weight in 2008 when I was only working part time, I slipped into very bad habits last year because I didn't plan how I was going to exercise and eat healthy meals.  Instead I stopped exercising all together and pretty much ate some form of delivery or carry out for the majority of my meals.  NOT GOOD!  So the very first thing on my list for next year is myself.  Exercising and planning for health meals will be an essential part of my year.  I know I'll have more energy and feel better, and it is an investment in myself that will last much longer than almost anything else I do.

Also for next year my husband and I are embarking on a major software project together.  It will be a tool set for photographers.  Some of you may know that my husband is a very gifted software developer...the majority of the projects he consults on are multi-million dollar projects.  So while the stuff we've outlined is complicated...I'm very confident that we'll be able to take a completely different approach than anyone else!  So that will be taking up the majority of my time over the next year.  More about that soon.

Photography will still play a role in my life - and an important one.  It'll just be a smaller slice of the pie.  I'll be more selective about the clients I take on to make sure we are a good match.  And I know that will make me much happier about the sessions I have.

So as part of this planning processes I made a chart of my days of the week and my projected time for each task.  It was really eye opening.  The first time I did it I couldn't get the # hours to be under 24!  And realistically I need it to be more around 20 or so hours to give me some wiggle room for things that just come up (like kids sick at home!).

 

While I could adjust week to week, this would be a plan for getting though my week.  Have you tried this yourself?  I just made a google spreadsheet with the days of the week and the task areas....then put the hours per day for each task.  Then I created a chart from that because I like to see things visually.

Try this for yourself.  Ask yourself some hard questions about your year - and what is realistic.  You'll be happier if you do!

Reflections

Have you been feeling the squeeze of the holiday rush too?  I hope so!  Today I had my last scheduled session for 2009.  What a great feeling to have made it through another hectic season.  And with some editing left before me, it is getting closer to that time where I can catch my breath and reflect on the last year, and consider changes for the new one. 

 
Every year I consider my work/life balance.  Some years I work more, some I focus more on my home.  2009 was definitely a year of work!  I'm glad my children still remember me when I wake them up, and that I'm able to steal the occasional dinner out with my husband.  And right now I'm working out how I can swing the focus back a little towards my family and my home and find happiness.  What great timing for the new PPA magazine that showed up at my home this weekend.  In it is a feature piece talking about just this....having balance between work and home.  And Melanie Mauer - one of my fellow speakers at the Workshop on the Waterfront - is featured in the article.  I can't wait to meet her in person and hear what she has to say!  And I swear that PPA must have a bug planted in my house...their articles always seems to be speaking directly to me!

In the meantime, I'd love to have readers share what they are reflecting on, or maybe some words of wisdom for the rest of us?  What do you say?

Party Hosting

 

I love my loft space and while I don't do many shoots there (light is not great) it is a great meeting place for clients and the neighborhood is perfect for that urban portrait look!  However, it is a big space and I hope to really use it more for events in the upcoming year.

The first such event was a book release party for the newly published Kirtsy Takes a Bow.  Kirtsy is a site similar to Digg but from a women's perspective, and for women. You can go there to find the most interesting topics online for women...everything from news to fashion to blog posts.  It is a great way to let someone else tell you where to surf online when you have some down time! 

To celebrate the success, they compiled some of the most popular items and put them together into a beautiful book!  The contributors are a who's who of the online world and when they asked if they could have their Houston release party at the loft I didn't even hesitate: YES!

To prepare my new office buddy, the editor of the book, and myself spend the better part of Sunday clearing away the urban jungle that had taken over the patio space in front of my building.  We also all but emptied the loft space to make room for the unknown number of guests that would be attending the party.

 

We couldn't have been luckier with the weather.  A cool front had come through so we could easily leave doors open and guests could come and go.  We had a fire pit outside, and wine inside.  A perfect combination!

I already knew a number of the guests from previous Houston events but the one contributor I was most interested in meeting was Karen Walrond (aka Chookooloonks), a photographer and author. It was love at first sight.  She has such a positive energy around her and was so fun to talk to!  I can't wait to see her again at another event.  Definitely check out her blog, and gain inspiration from one of her projects: Shutter Sisters.

 

So why host the party?  Mainly because I really feel important about community involvement and while my children and job keep me from doing more, I felt like this was a great way to support some pretty impressive women in the Houston area (and beyond).  Also, I think it is rare to get such an interesting and diverse group of people together in one spot which made for some great conversations.  I really enjoyed talking to the guests both about my photography, being in that neighborhood, other artists, and the book!  I encourage to you to get involved and see if there is something you can do to help further others in your community.  Plus, it never hurts to earn a few Karma points.

Shooting for YOU!

It is the holiday busy season so most of us are probably just trying to keep our heads above water.  Great! But what about those times of year when you are not as busy?  Have you considered shooting just for you?

What I mean is not going out and taking pictures of your own kids.  We know that comes with a different set of problems and you probably have taken their pictures a bunch of times.

What I really mean is think about something you'd like to try out - and go do it!

I'll give you one of my recent examples.

 

I was shopping in Target with my daughter and saw an incredibly cute little girl with her mom and I thought "I would love to photograph her!"  Well, it doesn't hurt to ask.  So I went right up to the mom, introduced myself, and told her I would LOVE to photograph her daughter for my portfolio.  Here's the thing, portfolio building doesn't have to end just because you have been in business for a while.  Sometimes it is great to get a model and shoot the way YOU want to shoot.  Or try out a new technique, or location!

So the mom said yes and as it turns out dad was a child model in his youth so it was no shock to them!  I was able to tell them where I wanted to shoot, when, how I wanted her to wear her hair, made clothing recommendations and brought some of my own.  It was great.  I got to completely control the session.  I got to take the photos I wanted to take, and in return I gave them the high res files as payment.  There was a new location I had recently gotten permission to shoot at so I was glad to have this session as my first go there to test the waters. 

I had a great time during this session and there were no expectations or requests for specific poses which gave me complete freedom.  In addition, I only edited a few of my favorites from the session instead of the standard 25-30 that I would from a paying session.  I'm thrilled to have the images for my portfolio.

Such a Joi from Jessica Grieves on Vimeo.

One word of caution...I do get asked all the time to shoot for free because someone thinks it would be good for me to build up my portfolio or get access to new clients. I consider these VERY different kinds of requests which are driven usually by someone wanting free pictures or not understanding my target market.  Unless for a very good cause I will usually say no to those kinds of requests because they are typically not the kind of photos I want to be taking.  What I'm really talking about is you creating a totally controlled session of you own imagining.

Have fun with it!  What are your thoughts on portfolio building after you have been in business a while?  Do you still occasionally do free shoots just because you want to?

Hanging with Hey Girl

Since I started this blog I have met so many wonderful people, both online, and in person.  I'm thrilled that I have so many fans and that I can share the things I have learned with so many other people.

Recently I have had more and more requests for one-on-one mentoring.  There are lots of fantastic workshops out there for anyone looking for a structured learning experience.  However, I have created the super flexible one day mentoring session called "Hanging with Hey Girl" to provide the opportunity for aspiring photographers to come to my loft for a day to completely pick my brain about what YOU want to learn.  So here are the details...

Hanging with Hey Girl

9 spots available in August
Houston, TX
One day - 9am-5pm

Lunch & Beverages included
$695/day

One on One Mentoring covering the topics you want to cover including:

• Projection Sales
• Package Creation
• Pricing
• Workflow
• Accounting
• Shooting/Post Processing
• Using Social Media
• Online Advertising
• Preferred Vendors

This mentoring is ideal for the aspiring pro that is just not sure how to move forward, or for the beginning professional that needs a little extra information to take their business up a notch.

The following dates are available for mentoring in August.  This is a great time to learn and develop your business before the holiday rush.  I don't plan on having any availability during the rest of the Fall when I'll be focusing on holiday portrait sessions. 

Book your date by July 21st at Noon Central Time and save $200 off the retail price.

If you are interested in coming with a friend the second person is half price - just let me know in the special instructions field when you pay for your day and I will contact you to complete the payment for the second person.
Monday, August 3

Thursday, August 6

Tuesday, August 11

Friday, August 14

Monday, August 17

Thursday, August 20

Tuesday, August 25

Friday, August 28

Monday, August 31

Questions? Contact me: jessica [at] bubblegumtree.com Please note that the mentoring fee is non-refundable but may be applied to a future mentoring session should an emergency arise and you are not able to make your selected date.

The Numbers are IN!

WOW!!!! I am beyond excited by the number of readers that took our online survey.  You far exceeded our expectations.  We thought if about 100 of you took it we'd be happy because we know how busy everyone is but when we hit 300 we were jumping for joy.  That means 1 out of 5 subscribers took the survey which should give us a great cross section of readers.

We have decided to close the survey as we feel like that is a great response rate.  We set aside some time this weekend to analyze the results and we'll be posting some summary information here on the site.  If you put in your email address to get results emailed to you, you should see that this weekend too!

I took a peek at the final thoughts which were so interesting but this one caught my eye:

"Once I went into actual real professional business, I was shocked at how much work it is."

I think so many of us feel that way and it is something the customer can be a little clueless about.  Today I'm home working on my business plan for expansion, accounting, and updating my website and I know I won't be touching my camera or opening up photoshop today.  But that is the business side which for me is fun too - just different.

Renovation Projects

I got the idea in my head that I wanted to paint this one wall in my loft pink.
...Which lead to me ripping out the little useless shelves that were on that wall. 

...And taking out the bigger built in shelves to paint them white. 

...And painting the ceiling white (which was some kind of dark blue and wood combination).

So today we got to work.  My studio manager and I spend a good part of the day taping, priming, and painting.  We primed the wood and the shelves, and we actually got all the walls in that hallway painted pink.  Now tomorrow I'm hoping to finish painting the ceiling and shelves so I can put it all back together.

We also painted the wall at our entrance blue.  I was inspired  by the tutu that I have which was hanging on the post to the left in the picture.  Between the two of us we got two coats up on the wall. 

It is exciting to add some color to the space! 

Lots of other exciting news on the horizon!

Sold out

Just a quick note that Learnfest sold out in 4 hours so I hope you got in today if you wanted to go. If you did you'll have a great time.

(posted from my iPhone)